GIGAPAN!

[RAOELINAVALONA Lee Ny Aina]

Gigapan is a collaborative project of Google, Carnegie Mellon University and NASA Ames Intelligent Systems Division's Robotics Group. It is a robotic platform that attaches to a digital camera and some computer software. The robotic platform allows a user to take a photograph, then it will re-aim the camera with great precision, to take another photograph. After taking many photos, the software stitches all the pictures into a gigapixel image.

Public beta-testing of a consumer version of the robotic platform and software has begun. Beta-testing and product platform development is being carried out by Gigapan Systems, who will eventually offer the unit for public sale.

Gigapan is an open website - anyone can upload photographs to it, and anyone can place comments on those photographs. Authors have no editorial control over the comments which are placed on their photographs. (Wikipedia)

Click here for a quickview of what looks like a Gigapan photo.